Overview
On World Sight Day (8 Oct) 2026, the World Health Organization, OneSight EssilorLuxottica Foundation and the Government of Karnataka released a report titled \"Advancing integrated, people‑centred eye‑care\". The report documents the institutionalisation of 393 vision centres, called Drishti Kendras, as a permanent component of Karnataka’s public health system, integrated into primary health infrastructure.
Programme Impact
Since 2022, phased studies across eight districts have conducted 14 million primary eye‑screenings. Over 450,000 free spectacles have been distributed to beneficiaries, and more than 250,000 cataract surgeries have been performed, addressing the two leading causes of avoidable blindness – uncorrected refractive errors and cataracts. Each Drishti Kendra is linked to a secondary surgical centre for advanced interventions, ensuring a continuum of care from community screening to surgery.
Government and Partner Statements
The release was led by Hon’ble Minister of Health, Karnataka, Shri U T Khader Fareed, who highlighted Karnataka’s ambition to become blindness‑free and described the Asha Kirana model as a documented case study for holistic eye‑care. He announced that 40,000 Asha Kirana workers will receive sunglasses during the World Sight Day celebrations and that a Blind Walk from the Vidhan Saudha will involve citizens from all walks of life.
Venu Ambati, President Greater India, EssilorLuxottica and Director of OneSight EssilorLuxottica Foundation, affirmed the scalability of the Asha Kirana model and expressed intent to replicate it nationally. Dr B Mohammed Asheel, Country Focal Point for eye‑care at WHO India, emphasized the initiative as an operational example of WHO’s Integrated People‑Centred Eye‑Care framework in a resource‑constrained setting, illustrating how policy can be translated into concrete service delivery, workforce empowerment and technology‑enabled accountability.
Partners and Leadership
Key participants included Bhavna Singh (EssilorLuxottica), IAS officer Gurudatta Hegde (Health Commissioner), Dr Vivek Durai (Joint Director) and Venu Ambati representing OneSight. The report underscores a multi‑sectoral partnership, quality assurance and a strategic framework aimed at long‑term viability of community‑anchored eye‑health services.
Significance
The institutionalisation of 393 Drishti Kendras marks a milestone toward a blindness‑free Karnataka and provides a replicable model for other Indian states and low‑resource environments seeking to integrate eye‑care into primary health services.